"Hello? I'd-- I'd like to report a missing person..."

--- --- ---

The backpack filled with things that she had taken from the apartment of one James Cheney had been tucked away in a safe place before she had returned days later. Without a key to his place she had teleported back in, unlocking the front door as a reminder to leave that way. Sailor Dia had made a mess of the kitchen and destroyed the television. While she'd been against the destruction at first, the other young woman had been right... There was no real way to explain what had happened to him. The only way to get closure would be for him to simply disappear and what better excuse was there than falling in with a 'bad crowd'.

Still, smashing the television was one thing... The rest? Bread strewn about, apples left to rot... It didn't make for the right kind of story. The broken glass, however?

Tourmaline started by cleaning up everything but the broken glass, leaving an old pizza box instead-- Soda bottles were pulled out from the recycling bin and on the counter she left the empty whisky and bourbon bottles that she and Priscilla had finished at the mansion after neatly wiping their fingertips away only to replace them with the fingerprints of Tourmaline, Dia and Aue-- All of them would be untraceable, never in any databases, protected by whatever magic force saw fit to keep them safe.

A few more glasses were left out on the counters. She smashed one or two more for good measure, setting one more on the coffee table filled with ice and water-- That one was for her, when she finished everything. I poured myself a glass of water and sat down. I-- I didn't know what to do.

His bedroom was next. Tourmaline knocked his laptop onto the floor, kicking it beneath his bed before tossing some of his clothes around as though someone had been looking for something. Other things she stuffed hastily into a bag as though he'd been packing, or unpacking, and then forgot what he was going to do next.

She should have put more thought into all of it, but... How did you put thought into making it look like someone disappeared when they were already gone? Why was she even bothering to cover for him?

"Closure." Closure.

--- --- ---

"I-- I'm sorry, this is harder than I thought." Katrina brought the glass up to her lips, taking a small sip before setting it back down on the table. "We-- We've been seeing each other since April? March. It was March because I remember our first date. He-- He took me to the CatFe, only he didn't know... He didn't know you had to have a reservation," her voice dropped low as she spoke, eyes drifting down to her hands. This was the easy part; telling the story of what had happened, tapping into the broken emotions again.

"We had a disagreement. He-- A mutual friend of ours walked out on us and it took a toll on everyone. I thought he was keeping things from me. It's... God, it's been a few weeks since we last spoke, but he's my Wonderboy. I missed him... Miss him. He's going to come back, isn't he?" Her eyes were bright and hopeful as she looked up to the officer, tears welling despite her attempt. It gained her a large, sturdy hand on the shoulder and a reassuring squeeze.

"When I got here the door was open. I thought he would be home. I thought we'd just talk and kiss and that everything would be okay..." She blinked as she brought her hand up to wipe at her face, unable to keep her fingers from trembling. The nerves were real, at least. The emotion? Also real. When the Squire had introduced himself she had wondered if something as simple as a kiss would be enough to fix everything.

Life isn't a ******** fairytale, Katrina.

"Someone broke his television. I-- I guess he had friends over, no one I knew or they would have told me. He would have told me if there was something wrong, wouldn't he? We were good together. God, I knew he was hiding things... I asked the neighbors, they're nice people, and they haven't seen him either. I swear he wouldn't just do this. He..."

There was a bit of commotion near the door as Priscilla Stratford entered the scene. She was wearing a white mink coat with soft, pink leather gloves, purse slung over her shoulder in a most elegant manner and determination in her eyes. "KittyKat, we're getting you out of here. This nice man is going to do his job because that's what Destiny City pays him to do." Her eyes narrowed as she eyed the detective for a moment before brushing past him so that she could collect her friend.

Katrina scooped up her phone as Prissy pulled her to her feet, leaning against the other young woman just a bit before looking to the officer once more. "You'll call me if you find anything, right? James wouldn't... He wouldn't just do this." Only he would. He had.

James Cheney had gone away and he was never coming back.

Somewhere out there was a young man wearing his face who didn't remember a thing about her. He didn't remember their first date, or any of the movies they had seen together. He didn't remember any of the times that she had been able to coax James onto the back of her bike. He didn't remember laughter, smiles, tears or kisses.

Somewhere out there was a Squire who knew who Captain Aluminite was, who knew things about Captain Tourmaline that no one else did. He knew the way her face flushed when she was breathless. He knew how to make her heart pound and just the right things to make her pause.

One day she would find the Squire-- But James? James Cheney was gone for good, and this? This would give her closure.

[Word Count: 1011]
[Inspiration: Love Me Like You Do/Sugar/See You Again]